Lamar Studios Photography School

How to Shoot in the Mist | Photography

Wed, 18 Apr 2012 00:02:05 +0000

Thought this was an interesting article you all might enjoy!

Photography Tips for Mist, Fog, Condensation and Hail

Posted: 14 Sep 2011 10:02 PM PDT

“Man in the mist” captured by Amer (Click Image to See More From Amer)

Soon we will be considering photography tips on waves, waterscapes, waterfalls, reflections, abstracts, splash ‘n spray, foam ‘n bubbles, and puddles as remedies for the photo doldrums. But, water can provide even more photo op’s! Here are 4 more:

# 1 – Mist: In the early morning or late evening, mist or groundfog can generate “artist’s light” as masses of water vapor in an area condense from coolness near ponds, rivers, etc or down in ravines and valleys. It burns off quickly though, so you have to anticipate it and get there early. Look for things extending above the mist, or visible through openings in it, as it swirls about.

# 2 – Fog: Can make all the difference between ordinary and exceptional images. In foggy scenes include foreground objects for silhouettes and interesting contrasts. Just remember that you generally have to increase your exposure by 1/2 to 3/4 of a stop to avoid a picture that’s too dark.

# 3 – Condensation: Perhaps more often associated with man-made things – cold objects amid warm, moist air – condensation is an often overlooked source of interesting pictures. So, watch out for cold water pipes and surfaces in warm places. Or, open your fridge sometime and check out the food containers with clear plastic lids. Are there any condensed water droplets on the underside of the lids? Remove the lid without disturbing the droplets, (Tip: leave the lids just sitting on top instead of clicked down tight) and gently place it down on a flat surface suitable for a background. Set up your camera to shoot straight down on the lid for over-all sharpness.

Regularly check your local weather forecasts and keep a notebook of the special places you find in your neighborhood that provide good locations for shots that include the following:

# 4 – Hail: Hail is possible with most thunderstorms as it is usually produced at the leading edge of a severe storm system and usually falls within 2 miles of its parent storm, during the summer months, in the afternoon and evening hours. Hail-producing clouds are often identifiable by their green coloration and hailstorms normally last about 3-15 minutes. Hailstones can vary from less than pea-size to larger than 4″. Place a hailstone over a slightly smaller hole in black cardboard and shine a light up through the hole and the hailstone, and photograph the hailstone’s interior structure. Or picture assorted stones along with coins, etc for size comparison on a dark background. Or photograph it after a heavy fall where ever it lays, amid the damage it may cause.

“1 1/2 inch+ Hail Stone Spring Storm Greensburg, Pa” captured by Daniel W Oliver (Click Image to See More From Daniel W Oliver)

Self-Assignments For Above Photography Tips:

Choose the projects that interest you most. Follow the photography tips conscientiously. Re-shoot when you aren’t satisfied. Do it til you are satisfied. It’ll take all your patience and passion. Your skills and eye will improve with the practice. Shoot especially in early and late light. Use a tripod as much as possible. Edit your results relentlessly. Pin small samples on the wall for a few days to study before making final prints for wall art.

Photography Tip # 1 – Mist: When the weather forecast predicts ground fog, have a rural scenic spot in mind to go to that has higher and lower sections within it and shoot it just as the sun comes up.

Photography Tip # 2 – Fog: When the weather forecast predicts fog, have a scenic spot in mind to go to and shoot a portion of it that has things that recede from you into the fog, with some leaves hanging down into the top of the frame as silhouettes.

Photography Tip # 3 – Condensation: If you have a container of yogurt with a clear plastic lid in your fridge, just sit the lid on top of the container and don’t click it down tight. When water drops from condensation form a pattern of circles on the underside of the lid, gently take the lid and place it down on a table or counter top, without disturbing the drops. Shoot straight down on it and make a close-up of a part of the pattern.

“Buildings In Water Droplets” captured by Ryan (Click Image to See More From Ryan)

Photography Tip # 4 – Hail: When a thunderstorm is forecasted keep an eye out for hail. Find a safe place to shoot from and shoot it as it falls and bounces off things, using both fast and slow shutter speeds.

In the next article of this set we’ll consider photography tips about water’s cold season photo op’s for remedying the photo doldrums, when it can turn crystalline or even solid!

About the Author:
John Maxymuik is the author of “Photography Tips For the Photo Doldrums” a set of 6-articles providing tips to break the grip of the photo doldrums. To see examples of fine art photography that made use of the “ideal photo subject”- water, go to my website at:http://ambienceimages.net.

For More Creative Photography Tools and Techniques:

Photo Nuts and Shots – Tools and Techniques for Creative Photography by Neil Creek is a very popular instructional eBook with a reputation for being the ultimate creative photography primer. It is designed to teach you how to harness light to convey emotion, understand the rules of composition … and know when to break them, take the sharpest possible photo every time, adapt the camera’s exposure to produce the shot you want, master the concepts of shot perception, planning, and execution — in any setting, and tap into your unique creativity to take evocative photographs that reach out to viewers. If you’re not satisfied that it is helping your photography within 60 days just let them know and they will refund your money in full.

It can be found here: Photo Nuts and Shots eBook
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Article from: PictureCorrect Photography Tips

Eric Meola | Take Great Pictures

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 17:44:39 +0000

Take Great Pictures

I used to work for Eric and he is truly a great photographer. He inspired me each time we were on a shoot and made me believe that nothing was more important than what we were doing at that moment. I came across this article about him and thought you might learn from these tips.

TIP: GO FOR THE EYES

Many photos are ruined because photographers “cut off” the head of the subject in the shot. For this reason we are often taught to make sure that, through the lens, there is good clearance above the head of the subject whom we are photographing. But not every portrait must resemble a passport photo. Below, Eric shows us how “cutting off” the head of the subject is not always a bad thing. Here are two examples where he goes for the eyes, making the eyes the central subject instead of the entire person.

TIP: CHANGE UP YOUR ANGLE.

When taking portrait photography, one does not need always to shoot from directly in front. In fact many of Eric’s photos are successful because he chooses to shoot from varying angles. In this particular shot below, he was challenged with photographing two incredibly tall Masai women. He said that the only way to truly illustrate their immense height was to photograph them from below. If he thought they were strange and interesting, imagine what they were thinking while looking down at Eric who was sprawled out on the ground below them, trying to fit them into his 20mm lens.

TIP: CHANGE YOUR PERSPECTIVE ENTIRELY

Strangely enough, the fronts and faces are not always the best side of people, especially when your focus is not so much on the details of the people themselves, but more the sense of commotion around a group. Below is a photo of a convoy of camels and their riders who encountered another group of travellers and formed a large circle of colour, dust, hooves, voices, and general pandemonium. The view on the inside of the circle did not really uphold the animation of the gathering, so Eric went right round the back of the circle and captured this shot.

>>Click here for the story behind the image…

TIP: BACKLIGHTING IS NOT ALWAYS YOUR ENEMY.

We have all taken photos of people or things that do not come out the way we expected because there was too much backlighting. We are inclined then to always make sure that the sun or other light source is always behind us, casting good light on the subject. In the examples below, however, Eric shows us how captivating images can be made by silhouetting the subject.

…another example of how backlighting can work ‘for’ you.

>>Click here for the story behind the image…

TIP: JUXTAPOSE, DON’T STRIKE A POSE

Some of the most amazing images in Eric’s or other photographer’s collections are the ones that show a smaller subject, usually man, woman, child, or animal juxtaposed next to or in front of a much large and seemingly more dominant form. Below is an example of how one photo is made better through juxtaposition. A close-up photo of just the young monk would no doubt be a beautiful image, but here Eric chooses to show the larger field wherein the entire upper body of the Buddha is shown. The Buddha does not steal our focus because it is larger. Instead it causes the young monk to stand out even more to the eye.

To see more of Eric Meola’s work online visit www.ericmeola.com. To ‘see and hear’ Eric talk on a number of subjects courtesy of PDN, Kodak and Quicktime check outLegends Online.

If you like what you see here then there are several links that you’ll want to check out like the Kodak and Kodak Professional websites for instance. As well, stop by the Eric Meola African Aperture and another interesing section of the PDN website.

http://www.takegreatpictures.com/photo-tips/photo-tips-and-techniques/eric-meola-6

Enjoy.

Shooting Silhouettes | Gilbert Photography Classes

Tue, 07 Feb 2012 18:13:20 +0000

I came across this great article about silhouettes and thought you might enjoy it.

The reason silhouettes are so engaging is because they are so open to interpretation. Think of a silhouette of a man sitting alone on a park bench at sunset. Is he sad and lonely because his wife has passed? Is he relaxed and content? Has he finally achieved an important goal in life? Is he anxious about how much longer he will live, and whether his loved ones will be cared for? Are there religious overtones?

The photographer may have all or none of these themes in mind when creating this image. The interpretation is dictated by the individual viewer’s mindset. The viewer subconsciously projects her own hopes, fears, and mood onto the silhouette.
The reason for this is simple. Your brain is constantly working to fill in the details of what it doesn’t know. In a photo such as this, the silhouette provides a great unknown which we cannot help but interpret.

Technique for Shooting Silhouettes

Taking silhouette photos is an intermediate photography skill. The technique is a little tricky, and it will take some trial and error on your first few attempts before you become proficient.

Silhouette photography requires that we use pure back lighting. That is, we want to place our subject so that we maximize the amount of light in the scene coming from behind the subject.
As an example, let’s describe how we would best set up a shot of a silhouetted woman standing alone on a beach at sunset. Sunlight will be our only source of light, and it will be coming from behind the subject. We will not be utilizing any reflectors or fill flash.

Aperture and Selective Focus

First, focus the camera on the woman. We want the outline of her silhouette to be crisp and in perfect focus. I recommend using a large aperture opening, specifically f8 or higher. The reason for this is we want the background sunset and ocean to be in good focus too.
With the sun just above the ocean horizon, point the camera at the sky just to the side of the sun. Keeping your aperture as you set it, adjust the shutter speed until your exposure is correct.

You may need a long exposure time. Therefore it is good practice have a tripod on hand to keep the camera steady.

Fire off a few shots and check the image on your LCD screen. If you used all the correct settings, you should have a perfectly exposed ocean sunset with your subject rendered as a black silhouette.

Halos and Silhouettes

You can render your silhouette with an interesting halo effect around her. If you desire this effect, move the subject directly in front of the setting sun. This will create a glow, or halo which will further enhance your subject. Such an effect will obviously influence the viewer’s interpretation of your silhouette.

Use Any Subject

Any subject can be rendered as a silhouette provided we are using back lighting. It need not be a person. A silhouette of a tree, or a child’s bike, or any strategically chosen object can add interest to a scene.

Conclusion

Silhouettes add a sense of mystery and intrigue to any image. Because our brains fill in the details of what is not known, a silhouette demands stronger involvement and interpretation from viewers. By using back lighting, and properly exposing the scene for the background, we can create beautiful and interesting silhouettes in our photography.